


The Rest of Forever

by MysticEmerald (feelskilledthefangirl)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Afterlife, Apple Pie Life (Supernatural), Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Heaven, Hurt/Comfort, Retirement, Sad with a Happy Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:48:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27652958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/feelskilledthefangirl/pseuds/MysticEmerald
Summary: They finally made it out. They were free from the life. The Winchester brothers could finally retire in peace and live out the rest of their days in quiet simplicity.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	The Rest of Forever

**Author's Note:**

> Season 15 finale "Fix-It"? Maybe? It probably depends on who you ask. This is just my take on how I would have liked to see things end. 
> 
> Warning- Long income Author Note Incoming: 
> 
> Mmmm oh wow I seriously didn't think I was ever going to post another story for the Supernatural fandom, but it seems I am feeling just a bit sentimental now that the show has finally reached its conclusion. This show will always have a fond place in my heart but I stopped watching it very early into season 13 as I had lost interest in the direction the storyline was taking. I also stopped seriously writing for the fandom around then too. So, somewhere around the end of 2017/start of 2018, I believe. 
> 
> However, I have decided to brush the dust off of this old, unpublished piece that has been sitting in my drafts for oh... about three years (yes really, three years). I just never got around to finishing it completely and left the fandom before it was done. After hearing about how disappointed so many were about the finale (I understand why after reading the episode summaries) so I decided it might be time to finish this piece up. It was always one of my favorite even if it's kind of short. I just couldn't seem to this to a place where I was happy with until now. 
> 
> I do apologize if anything feels a little inaccurate or "off" in relation to how the story progressed near the end. Like I said, I stopped watching a few years ago and I only vaguely kept up with things via the odd tumblr post that ventured across my feed or through brief plot summaries that I stumbled onto. So, since this was written a while ago and my memories of the show are from earlier seasons I wrote this story based on how I remember the characters pre-season 13 rather than what they became in the final seasons.
> 
> Anyways, please enjoy and thank you for reading~
> 
> Unbeta'd: All Mistakes are my own

When Sam and Dean finally retired, they moved to a small country house out in the middle of Texas. They stayed in a quiet neighborhood with just enough surrounding land to keep you from having to get to know the neighbors. The city was far enough away for them to avoid the everyday hustle and bustle of rural life while still being near enough for them to run the occasional errand.   
Growing up, Sam and Dean had fallen in love with the wide-open plains of Texas. They’ve driven through the state more times than they can count and had just as many hunts in the state. It seemed that Texas went on forever and had no end. The two of them had grown fond of the area and held a soft spot in their heart for the city of Austin. The two of them always dreamed of returning there and settling down there if they ever quit hunting for good.   
However, they never actually believed it was going to happen. All their talk of retirement had once just been aimless chatter and nothing more. A fevered dream that they turned to when they found themselves staring death in the face again. As much as they fought to survive, both boys knew that their next day was not guaranteed. People were only allotted so much luck in life and there was no telling when it would run out. They had come close to death far more often than either of them liked remembering, but somehow, they still carried on. Most hunters didn’t live to see their thirties, but that was the tragedy that came along with fighting evil for the greater good.   
No one ever expects to live long enough to retire from hunting. Bobby was the only hunter they knew of who had even achieved some semblance of what hunter retirement looked like. Even then, Bobby still got tangled up in hunting again later on which ended up being his demise. He would have likely lived a much longer and happier life if he hadn’t gotten involved at all. Everyone knew that was part of the deal though, you had to sacrifice one for the other. Both simply wasn’t an option.  
Now, however, everything thing that had once seemed impossible and unobtainable was suddenly at the tips of their fingers. They were free, they had finally won. The world was now resting in the sure, capable hands of Jack, the Nephilim who had once been a creature they feared would lose control and destroy everything was now the one who has inherited all of existence. Sam and Dean could rest easy knowing that Jack was looking out for the fate of humanity. The two of them had fought for so long, saved the world so many times, done things that were once nothing more than nightmares and horror stories. They had both earned their right to finally settle down and quit hunting once and for all. Endless years on the road and never having a true, stable home had taken its toll on the Winchesters but somehow, they made it through to the end.   
After they found a decent place to retire, they spent a few more years continuing to help out other hunters, providing them information and tools, much like Bobby had once done. It was a way for them to still feel that they could give a little to the generations that would come after them even after they stopped hunting. The two of them had more knowledge about hunting than they could ever dream of passing on, but they still wanted to help as much as they could. They talked once or twice about taking on a few local hunts here and there but eventually decided that they were simply just too old and too out of practice to take the risk. Their bones had grown achy and their reflexes too slow, so they would instead pass these cases along to those with more capable hands even if it was hard to accept at times.   
The Impala sat mostly dormant now, protected from the elements by a sizable garage. She shone bright as the sun and her surface gleamed in her retirement, finally able to rest now that she was no longer taking weekly beatings from their journey’s out on the open road. However, that didn’t stop Dean from tinkering around with her from time to time even if she no longer needed the constant upkeep. He still loved the car as if it were his own child.  
At night the two of them would sit outside on the back porch, curled into each other's arms, watching the stars gleaming high above as they reminisce on all the good times they shared. They would spend hours like this, buried in the past, remembering those they lost and teasing each other about long-forgotten memories. Their chocolate lab, Marble, was typically curled at their feet. Dean had gotten her as a birthday present for Sam a year after they retired. Sam had been shocked, never expecting his brother to will bring an animal into the house. He loved her nonetheless and so did Dean, even if he pretended otherwise. Sam had caught his brother more than once showering the excitable pup with love and affection and he often had to scold Dean when he tried to slip her table scraps.   
A few years later, they also became the owners of a stubborn orange tabby that had just shown up on their porch one day. She had no tag and wasn’t chipped so Sam, the softie, had taken her in. She enjoyed sleeping on their bed, her body curled up against Dean's face as he slept much to his great displeasure. At first, Dean had been less than pleased about the adoption of the cat and refused to keep her, sneezing endlessly while he complained about being allergic. However, every time Dean would put her outside, she would somehow find a way back in and onto their bed. Dean had always suspected that Sam kept letting her inside, but never gotten him to admit it. Eventually, though, Dean had given up and she was allowed to stay. They named her Grumpy, and Sam always joked that Dean and the cat had similar personalities. Dean claimed not to see the resemblance and often referred to her as ‘Little Shithead’. Either way, she had become a part of their family.  
Every now and then, on slow, dull days where there was nothing better to do, the boys found that they missed the adrenaline that came from a good hunt. Sam could see how antsy Dean got on days like this and would do his best to occupy his attention. Despite it all, neither of them would change a thing. They were safe and happy, two things that normally couldn't be guaranteed to anyone who became hunters.   
Their lives had been so far from safe and normal growing up, things rarely going as planned or working in their favor, but now they were free to do as they pleased. After years of tragedy, loss, and heartache, they were finally happy and the world was finally safe. The two of them had achieved the kind of life they had always dreamed of. They were getting to grow old together and have a taste of that carefree, apple pie lifestyle their father had hoped to one day get for them. 

* * *

  
Years later, when Sam and Dean were well into their 80's; after they had enjoyed all the time they could together, Sam finally passed.  
He went peacefully in his sleep and felt no pain at all departing this earth, his heart and soul full of love and joy. Dean wept silently for the loss of his brother, the man who had been his best friend, partner, and soulmate for all of his life. He knew this time, there was no bringing Sam back and for once, Dean decided he was okay with that. His brother had gotten to live the life he had always dreamed of and nothing was taken from him before he was ready. It hurt like hell, knowing that Sam was gone, but he knew his brother would be waiting for him when his time came too. He was sure he wouldn’t have to wait long.  
Out in the field behind their farmhouse, Dean gave his brother a proper hunter's funeral, his limbs aching in protest as he built the altar where his brother would lay. Tears silently slipped down his cheeks as he mourned the loss of his last remaining family. When the smoke and flames finally died, Dean continued to stand outside until the air began to grow too cold. Before returning to the house, Dean stopped by the garage to check up on the beloved car that had supported his family through so much. He lay a shaking, wrinkled hand against her glossy black surface and silently thanked her for all of her years of service. This ancient car had carried them heaven and hell, been by their side through thick and thin, and helped keep them together until they reached the very end.   
When Dean’s knees began to ache, he finally returned to the house where he now lived alone. The walls that had once felt so warm and full of life seemed cold and barren without his brother here to brighten the room.

* * *

  
Two days later, Dean also departed from this world, his heart unable to bear the pain of his loss. Despite his sorrow, Dean also went peacefully, his heart knowing that once he moved on, he would once again be reunited with the one who held the other half of his soul. Dean couldn't live without Sam. From the moment Sam passed, Dean knew he couldn’t do it. A world without Sam was a world Dean didn't want to be part of. The earth held nothing for him if he couldn’t share it with Sam.  
After Dean took his last breath, Cas made it a point to take time away from his duties in heaven and stop by the now-empty Winchester ranch. He scooped the eldest's frail, lifeless body into his arms. He looked at peace, a soft smile still resting on his lips.   
Cas carried Dean out into the back and prepared a hunter's funeral for him right beside where Sam’s had been. The charred ashes of Sam’s alter still gave off the strong smell of smoke when the when blew through the clearing. Cas felt that Dean deserved to have a proper send-off just like his brother. These two men had fought hard and sacrificed so much for the sake of the world. They deserved to be honored and remembered by at least one person. Their names should be written in all the history books and the Winchester Legacy deserved to live on forever, however, this would have to be enough. The two of them would and everything they achieved would live on in Castiel’s heart and mind, never to be forgotten.  
After the flames subsided, Cas placed a headstone for Dean in the field beside the one that had been put up for Sam. Cas stood over their graves, head bowed in mourning for the loss of his best friends and in respect of the two greatest hunters the world has ever seen.  
A slight breeze stirred the air behind Cas as he stood by the graves. Cas turned with a sorrowful smile, eyes red and puffy to see the gruff hunter standing beside him with warmth and kindness in his eyes. Dean placed a translucent hand on Castiel's shoulder, giving him a silent nod of acknowledgment and thanks for all that the angel had done for them over the years. Then, as quick as he appeared, Dean's spirit faded away, followed by the curious sound of a car engine starting up accompanied by the twinkling opening notes start of Stairway to Heaven. Cas shook his head, alone once again a small smile playing at the corners of his tear-stained lips. Dean's wry humor knew no bounds.   
  


* * *

  
Sitting in the driver's seat of the Impala, Dean woke up feeling light and filled with a type of peace he never dreamed was possible. His body was free of all the aches and pains that he swore he'd just been feeling moments ago. He couldn’t remember the last time his body had felt so good. A glance in the rearview showed a younger version of himself looking back. He was twenty-six again, bright-eyed, and eager, lips pulled into a cocky smile that said he was ready to take on the world.  
A glance to the side had Dean’s smile growing soft and warm. Sam was sitting beside him, looking just as pleased. He was barely twenty-two with short fluffy hair and that innocent babyface that could melt even someone with a heart of ice. Sam looked the same now as he did the day Dean came by and picked him up from Stanford.  
"What took you so long old man?" Sam asked, his smile growing wider as he spoke.  
"Shut up bitch," Dean shot back, wearing his famous shit-eating grin. "You know I can't stay away from your ugly mug for long. Gotta make sure you stay outta trouble, don't I?"  
“Keep me out of trouble? Yeah right,” Sam scoffed, smacking Dean’s arm playfully. “You’re the one that we gotta watch out for, jerk.”  
Dean shook his head, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he said, “Yeah, you’re probably right.”  
“That’s what I thought,” Sam snickered. His tone softened as he added, “I missed you.”  
"Yeah… yeah, I missed you too, Sammy," Dean whispered back, taking in as much of his brother as he could with just his eyes alone. Dean couldn’t believe he was lucky enough to be able to spend not only a full life on earth with Sam, but now they also had the rest of forever too.   
"So,” Sam started, looking expectantly out at the seemingly never-ending stretch road before them. “Where are we off to this time?”   
Dean thought for a moment before murmuring. "Where ever the road takes us, Sammy." He looked toward the vast, gleaming landscape that lay ahead and repeated, "Where ever the road takes us."  
With that, Dean cranked the ignition and Impala roared to life beneath his palms, running better than she had the day she rolled off the assembly line. The excitement was clear on Dean’s face and light danced behind his endless green eyes as the Impala purred beneath him. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been able to really take his baby out for a spin.  
With one hand curled loosely on the wheel and the other reaching out to tangle with Sam's, the Impala speed forward tires leaping across the asphalt like horses at the start of a race.   
The Winchester brothers were ready for the next adventure in the heaven they shared, tearing up the open road, just like they always had. They were ready for anything as long as it meant they would always be together. 


End file.
